ECCLESIOLOGY PART 5 - ELDERSHIP AND GOVERNANCE

 ELDERSHIP AND GOVERNANCE

Every local church needs to be led, and to be governed. Both of these two wings also need to be structured. While I appreciate that some Christians just want their local church to be ‘simple’, even a simple church still requires leadership, government, and structure, Church Polity is the term describing how a church is led, governed and structured. Denominational churches have a Church Polity which involves some external authority such as a bishop, moderator, superintendent, or president, being an integral component in a local church’s governance. Beyond this potential layer of accountability and governance most local churches have some form of internal governance which they ground in their understanding of what the New Testament teaches. Yet, local churches may be governed: 

(i) Congregational Government through democratic decision-making by each congregant member. 

(ii) Elder-led Government through presbytery leadership decision making by the elders. 

(iii) Pastor/Minister/Priest collaborative leadership with a Board of Officers entrusted by the congregation to make decisions on their behalf. 

(iv)  A Senior leader and an Operational Team comprised of staff members who make decisions on behalf of the church. 

Another way to think of the different paradigms of local church government is: (i) Congregational (each member participates), (ii) Episcopal (decisions can be made by a bishop), and (iii) Presbyterian (decisions can be made by a presbytery of local church leaders with denominational decisions being made by representatives from each presbytery who comprise a session). In each form of government there are local church leaders who may be called ‘elders’. The elders of a church are also called 'overseers' of a church. They are called to lead, protect, correct, feed, and care for the flock. I think every elder needs to learn how to do these things. This involves being trained how to pastorally listen to congregants.  For example, every elder needs to know how to respond to someone who pours out his or her heart to him about their recently traumatic loss of a beloved family member happening at the same time he or she had had their own medical event which led them to be hospitalised. At this point, if the elder interrupts, and says, “That’s nothing! You think that’s tough? Listen to what I’ve been going through! I’ve... [insert further evidence that the elder was not listening or caring to what he was being told].” Any elder who responds like this needs to be trained to empathise with those they are charged to care for. To further consider what the role of elders and overseers is according to what the Bible says, we begin with a consideration of how the Titus 1 defines this:   

Note the Apostle Paul's instructions to Titus on the qualifications of any elder:

We should also consider the further details that the Apostle Paul prescribed for the appointment of elders in First Timothy:

An elder is approved by the church as a person of godly character who exemplifies Christoformity (living consistently as follower of Christ).  An elder is not a young Christian. He has demonstrated that he is godly, loyal, husband and father. Elders are called to be shepherds who care for the sheep. This care also involves teaching, discipling, and correcting. In a church where there are several elders they should cooperate as a council with a first among equals identified as a Chair. The Chair convenes the council meeting, submits an agenda for approval for the meeting, leads the council in prayer, receives reports from the other elders, ensures that minutes are taken of the meeting and schedules their next meeting. The minutes of the Council meeting are sent out immediately to the elders after their meeting. Where there is also a senior pastor or minister, the Chair works closely with that senior leader.

Elders should not be appointed hastily. If a church is less than 50 people, it will not need 12 elders! If a church is larger than 500 congregants, it will almost certainly need more than 12 elders! The number of elders for a church needs to be reviewed as the size of a church changes. I would recommend that a church appoints its elders on an annual basis to enable for an elder to choose not to be reappointed, and the existing council of elders to not offer reappointment as well. Any such appointments satisfy the requirements for an elder outlined in Titus 1, and First Timothy 3. The position of an elder is primarily a pastoral role. The position of a deacon is largely one of practical service which includes management of finances, assets, staff appointments and remuneration, health and safety, compliance, and policies and procedures. 

When a church grows numerically, it will need to grow and adjust its structure. This includes how it is staffed, the function of its elders, and the role of its deacons as they oversee its management board. If you have anything to add to this, or feedback on this article, leave them in the comments below.